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The sentinel in the employ of the Shah of Tabaristan prepares to sacrifice his son to the ghost of the Shah’s soul, from a Tuti-nama (Tales of a Parrot): Second Night
c. 1560
The Cleveland Museum of Art
Cleveland, United States
The loyal sentinel, in orange, holds a knife to his son’s throat, ready to sacrifice him to save the life of his dying king, the shah. The shah himself watches from behind the tree on the right. At the left, the female personification of the shah’s soul intervenes, saving both the shah and the sentinel’s son.
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Details
- Title: The sentinel in the employ of the Shah of Tabaristan prepares to sacrifice his son to the ghost of the Shah’s soul, from a Tuti-nama (Tales of a Parrot): Second Night
- Date Created: c. 1560
- Physical Dimensions: Painting only: 10.2 x 10.6 cm (4 x 4 3/16 in.); Overall: 20.1 x 14.3 cm (7 15/16 x 5 5/8 in.)
- Provenance: Estate of Breckenridge Long, Bowie, MD, 1959; Harry Burke Antiques, Philadelphia, PA; Bernard Brown, Milwaukee, WI;
- Type: Painting
- Rights: CC0
- External Link: https://clevelandart.org/art/1962.279.16.a
- Medium: gum tempera, ink, and gold on paper
- Fun Fact: The near sacrifice of the sentinel’s son parallels the Qur'an’s story of Abraham and Ishmael.
- Department: Indian and Southeast Asian Art
- Culture: Mughal India, court of Akbar (reigned 1556–1605)
- Credit Line: Gift of Mrs. A. Dean Perry
- Collection: Indian Art
- Accession Number: 1962.279.16.a
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